Expanding toy space shuttle

ABSTRACT

An expandable toy space shuttle that employs a detachable cabin which allows a telescoping inner fuselage to extend from inside of the main fuselage thereby doubling the interior volume of the toy space shuttle. The toy can be customized to individual missions by the use of different inner fuselages of different sizes, different cabins, and different main fuselages all of which fit together and work with each other.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Provisional Application for Patent No. 61/204,066 filed on Dec. 30, 2008 for “Expanding space shuttle and toys” by Thomas Jay Zeek.

FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable.

SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention pertains to toy space shuttles, specifically to a method of enabling a toy space shuttle to expand and further to have interchangeable fuselages and cabins thereby providing tremendous flexibility in the size and functionality of the toy space shuttle. It works in most cases by the cabin detaching from the fuselage and an inner fuselage telescoping out from the main fuselage while the inner fuselage stays attached to the back of the cabin.

Toys and toy play sets work well when the parts perform multiple functions, and the parts are interchangeable to create various configurations that do different things. Toys that are intended to emulate space travel and especially toy versions of the current U.S. space shuttle have been limited in their function due to the inherent outward simplicity of rockets, lunar landing craft, and the space shuttle. A toy space shuttle that can be configured in different ways is desirable, especially if it will do things that would be fun and interesting in real life.

One of the problems facing any spacecraft program is predicting exactly how the spacecraft will be used over its thirty year life span. Cost concerns demand a copy exactly type of program where all of the space ships are made exactly or nearly exactly the same. Having more than one kind of space shuttle in no way reduces the cost or difficulty of making any one of them work, so only one kind of space shuttle at a time is practical but that severely limits the number of tasks that the space ship can be used for, and worst of all it requires that all of the space ships have to be big enough to handle the biggest job any of them will face in their thirty years of service, since they will all be the same size.

Another very big problem with manned space ships is the need to carry empty space into outer space. The space shuttle has to be big enough to carry not only all of the equipment that will be used on the biggest mission of its career, but enough empty space for the astronauts to use that equipment and to move around inside. That need for large volume means the need for large surface area, which adds tremendous weight and which makes the space shuttle weaker, so that a thicker heavier hull is needed for strength, which adds even more weight, more cost, and further restricts the shuttles usefulness.

What is needed is a sort of pop up camper type of solution that obviates the need to carry empty space into outer space, and which makes the space shuttle more adaptable to different missions, and which reduces the weight and expense attendant to a one size fits all and oversized space shuttle. It is the object of the current invention to incorporate the attributes of a good space shuttle into a toy with interchangeable parts that can create various configurations to do different things.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The current invention is a model of a spacecraft that saves tremendous weight and fuel by having a changeable size and by obviating the need to carry empty space into outer space. It works by having a detachable cabin section that can fit different fuselages and by having an inner fuselage to telescope out of the main fuselage. Different inner fuselages of different lengths and with different features can be used for different missions or they can be left out entirely, and different cabins and outer fuselages can be used for different missions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is of the most fundamental embodiment of the invention. A cabin 20 is attached at the joint 14 to an eight inch fuselage 30. The seven inch inner fuselage 40 is hidden inside. The fuselage 30 has replicas of rocket engines 80 on its back end.

FIG. 2 is of the same toy space shuttle as FIG. 1 but with the joint 14 having opened and the seven inch inner fuselage 40 starting to slide out of the eight inch fuselage 30. The seven inch inner fuselage 40 is still attached to the back of the cabin 20.

FIG. 3 is of the same toy space shuttle seen in FIGS. 1 & 2 with the seven inch inner fuselage 40 now fully extended. The inner fuselage has cargo bay doors 50.

FIG. 4 is of basically the same shuttle configuration as FIG. 1 but with an added one and a half inch outer fuselage 31.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show the same 7 person cabin 20 and eight inch fuselage 30 with different inner fuselages 45 and 46.

FIG. 7 shows the cabin 20 attached to a six inch fuselage 33 with a three inch tail section 60 attached to the fuselage, and a five inch inner fuselage hidden inside.

FIG. 8 shows the space shuttle of FIG. 7 with the five inch inner fuselage 41 having telescoped out from the six inch fuselage 33

FIG. 9 shows the cabin 20 attached to a four inch fuselage 32 with a three inch tail section 60 and there is a three inch inner fuselage inside of the four inch fuselage.

FIG. 10 shows the same four inch fuselage 32 and tail section 60 as are shown in FIG. 9 but with a smaller cabin 21 and the three inch inner fuselage 42 extended. It has small cargo bay doors 51.

FIG. 11 shows how a toy space station could be configured using this invention. The cabin 20 is attached to a ten inch long space station 70 which is in turn attached to the three inch tail section 60. Two five inch inner fuselages are hidden inside.

FIG. 12 shows the cabin 20 and tail section 60 detaching from the space station 70. The inner fuselages 44 can be seen but have not yet started to come out.

FIG. 13 shows the space station 70 in orbit over the earth and the inner fuselages 44 are fully extended. The cabin 20 and the tail section 60 have come together and are headed back to earth.

FIG. 14 shows a ten inch fuselage 35 with alternative methods of expandability. Its sides are partially open.

FIGS. 15 and 16 show two of the telescoping inner fuselages by their self. The five inch inner fuselage 41 has no cargo doors.

FIG. 17 shows a much smaller version of the toy space shuttle of this invention consisting of a two person mini cabin 22 and a four inch mini fuselage 36 and a three inch mini inner fuselage 49 is starting to slide out. It is like a Mini Cooper® space shuttle.

FIG. 18 shows a top view of the cabin 20 to show how the sectional view in FIG. 19 is made.

FIG. 19 shows a side sectional view of the cabin 20.

FIG. 20 shows a top view of a six inch fuselage 34 with tail section and wings to show how the sectional view in FIG. 21 is made. The rocket engines 80 have been left out of this picture.

FIG. 21 shows a partial side view of the six inch fuselage 34 partly in section to show the fitting ring 105.

FIG. 22 shows a side view of a five inch inner fuselage 41 to illustrate the protrusions 91 that grip the inside of the cabins or any other fuselage equipped with the concavities 92.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This invention is a toy version of an improved design for a space shuttle.

The most basic embodiment of the toy of this invention is shown in FIGS. 1, 2, & 3. In this embodiment it consists of a seven person cabin 20, an eight inch fuselage 30, and a seven inch inner fuselage 40. The wings 63 and tail rudder 62 and rocket engines 80 are integral parts of the fuselage 30.

In FIG. 1 the toy is shown compact as it would be on the launch pad and during reentry. The cabin 20 is joined to the eight inch fuselage 30 at the joint 14. The inner fuselage 40 is inside of the eight inch fuselage 30. It protrudes slightly out of the fuselage 30 and is attached to the inside of the back of the cabin 20 by means of three protrusions 91 fitting into corresponding concavities 92 so that it will remain attached when the eight inch fuselage 30 is pulled away from the cabin. The protrusions 91 are shown in FIG. 22 and the concavities 92 are shown in FIG. 19, and both are described in paragraph 0054 below.

FIG. 2 shows the seven inch inner fuselage 40 beginning to telescope out of the eight inch fuselage 30 as a real shuttle would do when it gets into outer space. The fitting ring 105 is now visible as is the larger protrusion 93 on the left side. These fit inside of the back of the cabin 20 and hold it in place until the cabin and fuselage are pulled apart. They are described in detail in paragraph 0053.

The cargo bay doors 50 are a part of the inner fuselage 40 to protect the outer fuselage from the structural problems they would pose to it and so future missions can use a different inner fuselage when cargo bay doors are not necessary.

FIG. 3 shows the toy with the inner fuselage 40 having telescoped fully from the outer fuselage 30 and still attached to the back of the cabin 20 the way a real space shuttle would be in outer space. This method of making a space shuttle also provides windows 52 which are not present on the current U.S. space shuttle. The inner fuselage 40 is the color of aluminum because in the real version the inner fuselage is not designed for the stress of reentry.

By expanding in this way a space shuttle can create its own empty space for astronauts to live and work in without the expense of carrying that empty space all of the way from the surface of the earth. Different inner fuselages of different lengths can be used to customize the size of the shuttle for each mission, or different inner fuselages with different equipment can be used, all with the same cabin and outer fuselage.

This design also makes a safer space shuttle for reentry because if the fuselage or wings are damaged the cabin can detach and deploy parachutes and make a splash down.

The toy might have no more pieces than are shown in FIGS. 1, 2, & 3, or it can have any number of additional interchangeable pieces that can be included in a larger set or collected individually over time.

FIG. 4 shows how the joint 14 allows the shuttle shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, or any other configuration of this invention to be extended by adding a fuselage extender, in this case a one and a half inch fuselage 31. The one and a half inch fuselage 31 uses the same fitting ring 105 as most other outer fuselages and tail sections in this invention at its front end and the inside of its back end is the same as the inside of the cabin 20 shown in FIG. 19 so it can accept the front of the next fuselage or tail section. The four inch fuselage 32 in FIG. 10 and the six inch fuselage 33 in FIG. 8 have the same attributes and can be used in the same way. This configuration can use the same seven inch inner fuselage 40 as the configuration shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3 or it can have a longer or shorter inner fuselage or no inner fuselage at all.

FIG. 5 shows how the telescoping inner fuselage can be used to make a weaponized space shuttle. When the inner fuselage 45 is extended the side doors 55 open and have missiles 57 already attached.

FIG. 6 shows a space shuttle with a stairway 58 that folds up and acts as a door in the side of the fuselage 46.

Other specialized inner fuselages might include a lunar landing fuselage that comes out completely and detaches from the cabin, allowing the cabin to rejoin the outer fuselage for their return to earth, or an inner fuselage with rocket engines to travel to a different place.

FIGS. 7, 8, 9, and 10 show how different cabins 20 and 21 and a separate tail section 60 can be used to make different configurations of this toy. FIG. 10 uses a three person cabin 21.

FIGS. 11, 12, and 13 show how a toy space station can be configured using this invention.

FIG. 11 shows the cabin 20 and tail section 60 attached to the space station 70 as a real shuttle would be when attached to its rockets on a launch pad.

FIG. 12 shows the cabin 20 and tail section 60 detaching from the space station 70 as a real shuttle would do in outer space. The inner fuselages 44 can be seen but have not yet started to come out. The space station 70 has rectangular windows 54.

FIG. 13 shows the space station 70 in orbit over the earth and the inner fuselages 44 are fully extended. The cabin 20 and the tail section 60 have come together and are headed back to earth.

FIG. 14 shows alternative methods of making the toy of this invention expandable. It is a fold out fuselage 35 that has fold out sides 65 and a telescoping top 53. The fold out sides 65 have canvas 56 to create extra room when the sides 65 are opened. The fold out sides 65 are only half open in this picture. The fuselage 35 shown here needs a tail section 60 added but another version can be made with an integrated tail section. In either case an inner fuselage can be added for more expandability. These methods of expandability can also be employed by an inner fuselage after it slides out.

FIGS. 15 and 16 show inner fuselages by themselves.

FIG. 17 shows a toy mini space shuttle that models what would be about a four meter long space shuttle in real life, or about six meters when fully extended. It has a two person mini cabin 22, a mini fuselage 36, and a mini inner fuselage 49, and it uses a mini fitting ring 106 in the same way that the other cabins, tail sections, and fuselages of this invention use the normal fitting ring 105, which will be described below.

FIG. 18 shows a top view of the cabin 20 to show how the sectional view in FIG. 19 is made.

FIGS. 19, 20, 21, and 22 show one method for fitting the pieces of this invention together. FIG. 19 is a side sectional view of the cabin 20 that shows the parts that fit the various fuselages and tail sections of this invention.

The back edge 100 of the cabin, which is also present on many of the fuselages butts into the front edge 104 of the fuselage or tail section that is being attached, creating the visible line of the joint 14 where the parts come together. The fitting ring 105 which is on the front end of the fuselage or tail section goes into the back of the cabin and the larger protrusions 93 which are on the sides of the fitting ring 105 fit into the larger concavities 94. The larger concavities 94 and the larger protrusions 93 are both shaped like part of a cylinder, one convex and the other concave. The larger concavities 94 are designed and placed so they will hold the front edge 104 of the fuselage tight against the back edge 100 of the cabin. The larger concavities 94 are slightly longer than the larger protrusions 93 to avoid the need for a perfect fit. The inner bevel 101 around the back edge 100 of the cabin helps to guide the fitting ring 105 into place. The larger protrusions 93 can be seen in top view on each side of the fitting ring 105 in FIG. 20.

FIG. 22 shows the protrusions 91 that fit into the concavities 92 that are shown in FIG. 19. There are three protrusions 91 spaced about evenly around the outside of the five inch inner fuselage 41 near each end as with any other inner fuselage of this invention. The protrusions 91 and the concavities 92 are both shaped like part of a cylinder, one convex and the other concave. The concavities 92 are designed and placed to hold the inner fuselage tightly against the back wall 96 of the cabin to prevent any wobbling when the outer fuselage is pulled away. The second inner bevel 102 helps to guide the inner fuselage into place, and reduces the size of the inside of the cabin to fit the inner fuselage.

When the outer fuselage is attached to the back of the cabin there is still space for the protrusions 91 between the front of the fitting ring 105 and the second inner bevel 102 so the inner fuselage does not have to be stuck at all, but can be removed freely as would be desirable in the case of the lunar landing inner fuselage described in paragraph 0042 or the space station shown in FIGS. 11, 12, and 13.

The protrusions 91 also prevent the inner fuselage from slipping completely into the outer fuselage by bumping into the fitting ring 105, and they prevent the inner fuselage from slipping completely out of the outer fuselage by the same means.

The port hole 98 is a hole in the back wall 96 for astronauts to go through.

The toy can be made of any ordinary toy making plastic, preferably plastic that can be colored easily and which will accept decals, paint, or ink, and which is tough and durable because it is intended to be an action toy. Harder plastics such as polystyrene are also suitable for versions of the toy that are intended for display. It is shown in white but it can be made in any color desired, and may also have stickers, paint, or ink added for adornment such as the American flag, racing stripes, and the name of the space ship e.g. USS Enterprise. It can also have electric lights or any other additional gadgets that are desirable.

REFERENCE NUMERALS IN DRAWINGS 14 joint 20 7 person cabin 21 3 person cabin 22 2 person mini cabin 30 eight inch fuselage with tail section 31 one and a half inch fuselage 32 four inch fuselage 33 six inch fuselage 34 six inch fuselage with tail section 35 fold out fuselage 36 mini fuselage 40 seven inch inner fuselage 41 five inch inner fuselage 42 three inch inner fuselage 44 inner fuselage w/closed ends 45 inner fuselage w/side doors 46 inner fuselage w/stairway 49 mini inner fuselage 50 cargo bay doors 51 small cargo bay doors 52 window 53 telescoping top 54 rectangular window 55 side door 56 canvas 57 missile 58 stairway 60 tail section 62 tail rudder 63 large wing 65 fold out side 70 space station 80 rocket engine 91 protrusion 92 concavity 93 larger protrusion 94 larger concavity 96 back wall 98 port hole 100 back edge 101 inner bevel 102 second inner bevel 104 front edge 105 fitting ring 

1. a toy with the appearance of a space shuttle having an expandable fuselage.
 2. the toy of claim 1 having a detachable cabin.
 3. the toy of claim 1 having a telescoping fuselage.
 4. the toy of claim 3 having a detachable cabin.
 5. the toy of claim 4 having a plurality of interchangeable detachable cabins.
 6. the toy of claim 3 having a plurality of interchangeable inner fuselages that telescope out of the main fuselage.
 7. the toy of claim 3 having a detachable tail section.
 8. the toy of claim 2 having a plurality of main fuselages of different lengths.
 9. the toy of claim 4 having a plurality of main fuselages of different lengths.
 10. a detachable cabin section of a toy space shuttle.
 11. the cabin section of claim 10 having a means of attaching to an inner fuselage of said toy space shuttle whereby said inner fuselage can telescope out of the main fuselage of said toy space shuttle and remain attached to said cabin section. 